You have been living in musculoskeletal pain for many years. You can probably describe your problems and situation in great detail as you know your body well. You have tried a multitude of therapies (conventional and alternative) to resolve your problem. You have been proactive in your health care and have followed the directions and advice of your health care practitioners.

After all this, you still have no answers. You still have the problem. You still have the pain.

Your pain may have started as early as eight or nine years of age. As a child you may have:

been awkward or clumsy when walking and running

had poor co-ordination

had a dislike or aversion to participating in sports or any activity

had 'bad posture'

As a teen, your chronic pain may have initially started as an ache in your feet, ankles, hips or low back.

It may have been triggered by a sports related injury that never quite healed. It probably came and went. Your parents may have taken you to the pediatrician, orthopedist, a physical therapist or a sports medicine physician. They may have given you exercises and anti- inflammatories.

As an adult, your pain may have spread to your upper body.

It slowly became worse, more constant, and limited what you could do. It may be that you experienced a sports injury as an adult that just would not completely heal. As it became frequent and debilitative, perhaps you could no longer ignore it and started using more anti-inflammatories to control the pain.

You may have sought help from a podiatrist, sports medicine physician or chiropractor. Being unsuccessful, you might have sought answers in the alternative field, such as massage, cranial sacral, or biofeedback. You may have turned to the internet for answers, or bought magnets or energy bracelets, all to no avail.

After years of physical suffering, you may have developed emotional issues such as:

depression and loss of hope

dependence on family and friends

lack of pleasure engaging in activities (as you are doing them while in pain)

You may have found that you can not function physically, mentally or emotionally, as you once could.

You are watching your body fall apart. Where you once had muscle tone and a slim, attractive body, you may have gained weight from forced inactivity, or the pain and stress may show as premature aging in your face.

With each cycle of therapy, you experience hope and temporary relief, but, when your pain again returns, this can deepen your level of depression.

Because of the long journey filled with disappointment, you may feel disillusioned. You worry that the medical community might not have answers. You may be confused and don’t know where to turn. You’ve heard it all before and may have been on the verge of giving up - thinking that perhaps your life and fate are reduced to managing your pain instead of eliminating it.

But you still believe that you deserve a better life than the one you are living now. In your heart you know that there must be an answer out there, and that you can and will get better. You are ready to do what it takes to free yourself from your chronic muscle and joint pain.

To understand what commitment is involved in finding permanent freedom from your pain, please read the Patient's Commitment.